Apparatus for measuring the evaporation of liquids.



' N. H. FREEMAN. APPARATUS FOR MEASURING THE EVAPORATION 0P LIQUIDS.

v APPLICATION FILED FEB. 1, 1911. 1,014, 1 39.

Patented Jan. 9, 1912.

- Mambo c v %&W4x .1 i v afli'wlm NAT H. FREEMAN, OF BOULDER, COLORADO.

APPARATUS FOR MEASURING EVAPORATION OF LIQUIDS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 9, 1912.

Application filed February l, 1911. Serial No. 606,045.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, NAT H. FREEMAN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Boulder, in the county of Boulder and State of Colorado,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus forMeasuring the Evaporation of Liquids; and I do declare the following tobe a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as willenable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and usethe same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to thecharacters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of thisspecification.

My invention relates to improvements in means for accurately measuringthe evaporation or volatility of liquids. Through its agency I determinethe relative proportion of air required to volatilize a given quantityof liquid, as gasolene. By virtue of this instrument the relativequalities of different grades of the same volatile product or ofdifferent volatile products may be ascertained.

In my improved device I employ a receptacle for holding the liquid whosevolatility is to be determined; a receiver containing a porous elementfor the purpose of breaking up the liquid which flows thereto from theliquid receptacle in order to facilitate its evaporation; meansconnected with the receiver below the porous element for introducing airfor purposes of evaporation; a suction-producing device connected withthe receiver; a receptacle below the point where air is introduced tothe receiver for holding the unevaporated liquid; and a thermometer forregistering the temperature produced by the evaporation.

Having briefly outlined my improved instrument, I wlll proceed todescribe the same in detail, reference being made to the accompanyingdrawing in which is illustrated an embodiment thereof.

In this drawing: Figure'l is a sectional view taken through the device,the suctionproducing means being shown in elevation and chiefly brokenaway. Fig. 2 is an elevation of the same, the parts being shown on asmaller scale. v 1

The same reference characters indicate the same parts in all the views.

Let the numeral 5 designate a receiver, which is preferably composed ofglass. The body portion 6 of this receiver contains a series of porouslayers, disks or diaphragms 7 arranged one above another and separatedby spacing rings 8. Just below the lowermost porous diaphragm 7 thereceiver is equipped with a nipple 9 having a passage 10 controlled by avalve 12, whereby air may be turned on or cut off from the receiver atwill. Below this nipple the receiver is reduced in sizeas shown at 13,the lower extremity of this reduced part being normally closed by avalve 1 1, which, however, may be opened when it is desired to draw offthe liquid contents of the receiver, the latter being open below thevalve 14 as shown at 15.

The upper extremity of the receiver is preferably outwardly flared asshown at- 16 to receive a stopper 17, preferably composed of rubber.Passing through this rubber stopper is a glass tube 18 whose lowerextremity protrudes into the receiver above the porous element, andwhose upper extremity communicates with a receptacle 19 for the liquidwhose volatility is to be determined. Located'within this tube 18intermediate its extremities is a valve 20 whereby the flow of liquidfrom the receptacle to the receiver may be controlled at will. A secondglass tube 21 passes through the stopper 17 and protrudes above thesame, its outer extremity being connected with a water tank 22 by meansof a flexible tube 23, one extremity of which is slipped over the end ofthe tube 21, while its opposite extremity is applied to a nipple 24secured to the top of the tank, the nipple having a passage whereby thetank and receiver are placed in communication with each other when theparts are connected as illustrated in the drawing.

Connected with the lower extremity of the tank 22 is a draw-off faucet25. The tank 22 is also equipped with a gage glass 26 so that the depthof liquid therein at all times may be determined. This gage glass isalso graduated in order that the quantity of water in the tank, measuredin terms of any predetermined liquid unit, will be indicated.

Passing through the stopper 12 of the receiver is a thermometer 27 whosebulb or lower extremity is introduced into the porous element composedof the separated foraminous or mesh diaphragms 7. The thermometerprotrudes above the top of the stopper, whereby the temperaturedetermined by the evaporation of the liquid may be ascertained.

'The lower reduced part 13 of the receiver is preferably graduated andfigures placed thereon to indicate the quantity of unevaporated liquidremaining in the receiver after any test or after the quantity of liquidoriginally placed within the receptacle 19 has been delivered to thereceiver under the conditions necessary for evaporating it ordetermining its volatile quality.

When the device is in use it suined that the tank 22 is filledpreferably water, and that a predetermined quantity of liquid whosevolatility is to be tested is placed within the receptacle 19. The valve20 is then opened to allow the liquid from the receptacle 19 to passinto the receiver; and the valves 12 and 25 are simultaneously opened,allowing the liquid to escape from the tank 22 and the air to enter thereceiver below the porous element. The escape of water or other liquid,as the case may be, from the tank 22 produces suction in the receiverwhereby air is drawn out of the latter into the tank above the liquid,to break the vacuum in the tank 22. This suction in the receiver abovethe porous element causes the air from the atmosphere passing throughthe nipple 9 to pass rapidly up through the porous elementsimultaneously with the downward passage of the volatile liquid throughthe said element, thus producing ideal conditions for the volatilizationor evaporation of the liquid.

Attention is called to the fact that the remay be aswith liquid,

ceptacle 19 is graduated so that the quan-v tity of liquid placedtherein may be readily determined. Hence after this liquid has all beendelivered to the receiver the quantity of air which has been brought incontact therewith is indicated by the space in the tank 22 above theliquid. This is determined by the graduations on the gage glass,

in connection with which any desired indicating characters may beemployed. At the same time the amount of unevaporated liquid will beindicated by the figures on the graduated part 6 at the lower extremityof the receiver. In this way the exact relative proportion of airrequired for evaporating a given quantity of liquid may be ascertained;and it is in this way that the volatile quality of the liquid may becompared with another grade of the same kind of liquid or with anotherliquid, according to the purpose of the test. the thermometer indicatesthe variation in temperature from normal, resulting from the coolinginfluence incident to the evaporation of the liquid within the receiver.

If desired the delivery of liquid from the receptacle 19 to the receivermay be so regulated that it will all enter the receiver dur- At the sametime the receptacle 19 is subjected to the test, it

will be understood that an amount of air required to fill the tank 22has been employed in the evaporation of this charge of liquid.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is: I

1. In an apparatus for measuring the evaporation of liquids, thecombination of a receiver containing a porous element, means forintroducing the liquid to be volatilized above the porous element, meansfor introducing air below the porous element, and a liquid-containingtank in communication with the receiver above the porous element forproducing suction within the re ceiver by the escape of liquid from thetank, substantially as described.

2. An apparatus for measuring the volatility of liquids, comprising avertically disposed receiver, a porous element located thereinintermediate its extremities, means for introducing liquid to beevaporated above the porous element, means for introducing air below theporous element, and means for introducing suction above the porouselement, the lower port-ion of the receiver below the porous elementbeing reduced in size and graduated to indicate the quantity ofunevaporated liquid, substantially as described.

3. In an instrument of'the' class described, the combination of avertically disposed receiver having a porous element interposed thereinbetween its extremities, the said element consisting of a number ofporous diaphragnis arranged one above another and suitably spaced, meansfor introducing liquid above and air below the porous element, means forproducing suction above the porous element, and means inserted in thereceiver and protruding therefrom for measuring the temperature in thereceiver during the process of evaporation, substantially as described.

it. In a device of the class described, the combination of a verticallydisposed receiver whose body portion contains a porous element, meansfor introducing a volatile liquid into the receiver above the porouselement, means for regulating the flow of said liquid, means forintroduclng air to the receiver below the porous element, and aliquid-containing tank in communication with the receiver for producingsuction therein by the escape of liquid from the trolled passage, andaliquid-containing tank tank, whereby the volume of air employed incommunication with the receiver for proto volatilize a given quantity ofliquid may ducing suction and measuring the volume of be determined. airemployed in the evaporation of a given 5. In a device of the classdescribed, the quantity of liquid, provision being made for combinationof a vertically disposed reallowing the liquid to escape from the tank,ceiver, a porous element interposed therein the latter being equippedwith means for and composed of a series of foraminous diaindicating thedepth of liquid in the tank at phragms arranged one above another andany time, substantially as described. suitably spaced, the portion ofthe receiver 8. In apparatus for measuring the evapobelow the porouselement being reduced in ration of liquid, the combination of a resizeand graduated for liquid measuring ceiver containing a porous elementlocated purposes, means for introducing air between intermediate itsextremities, the receiver bethe said graduated portion of the receivering vertically arranged, the upper extremity and the porous element, agraduated liquidof the receiver being closed by a suitable containingreceptacle in communication with stopper, a tube passing through thesaid the receiver by a valve-controlled passage, stopper, a receptaclehaving liquid in comand means for producing suction in the remunicationwith the tube, a second tube ceiver to facilitate the'passage of airthrough passed through the stopper, a liquid-conthe porous element, thesuction-producing taining tank with which the second tube is devicebeing equipped to measure the quanin communication, means forintroducing air tity of air employed in the volatilizationof into thereceiver below the porous element, a given quantity of liquid,substantially as and means inserted in the receiver and prodescribed.truding therefrom for measuring the tem- 6. In a device of the clasdescrib d, a perature within the receiver during the closed receiververtically disposed, containprocess of evaporation, substantially asdeing a porous element intermediately located, l d. means forintroducing liquid to be volatil- 9- In apparatus of the classdescribed, the ized, means for introducing air to facilitate c m inationwith a normally closed receiver, volatilization, and a liquid containingtank m an for ln rodncing liquid thereto to be in communication with thereceiver for pro- VOlatiliZed, means for introducing air into ducingsuction by the escape of the liquid receiver below the point where theliquid from the said tank whereby the quantity of enters, a liquidcontaining tank in communiair employed in the volatilization of a givenCation i h e ecei er for producing sucquantity of liquid may bedetermined. on Within. the receiver by the escape of 7. In apparatus forthe volatilization of liquid from Said tank, and means mounted liquids,the combination of a vertically dis- 0n he Sa d nk for indicating thequantity posed receiver having a porous element 10- i l empl yed In theevaporation of a cated intermediate its extremities, the lower givenquantity of liquid, substantially as deportion of the receiver beingreduced in size cri and graduated to measure the unevaporated In testimny he of I M X my Signature liquid, means at the lower extremity of then Pre n f wo Wi n sses.

graduated portion for drawing off the un- NAT H. FREEMAN. evaporatedliquid, a graduated liquid recep- Witnesses:

tacle in communication with the receiver HORTENSE UHLRIGH,

above the porous element by a valve-con- F. E. BOWEN.

, Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, byaddressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

